The power play came at a policy convention where Horwath won a leadership review Saturday with 76.4 per cent support after leading her party to 17 seats in last October’s vote, a gain of seven MPPs.

Ontario Federation of Labour president Sid Ryan said Horwath didn’t go far enough in a package of demands to McGuinty’s minority Liberal government, which included a wealth surtax on people earning more than $500,000.

“What we’ve got out there now is not strong enough,” Ryan told the Star on the convention floor, where he proposed his ideas in a resolution to about 800 delegates from ridings across the province.

McGuinty is threatening to legislate wage freezes unless public sector workers agree to them as the government struggles to erase a $15.2 billion deficit by 2018. Ryan is seeking a deal to preserve free collective bargaining and to reform labour laws.

“There’s an opportunity here to have some real dialogue on big-ticket items that we don’t see on the menu that Andrea has put before the public,” said Ryan. “We’d like to see it being toughened up a little bit.”

The government could fall in a budget vote due by April 25, forcing a late May election that would cost taxpayers almost $100 million. The Progressive Conservatives have vowed to vote against the budget, saying it doesn’t do enough to control spending and create jobs, leaving the New Democrats in the driver’s seat.

Horwath tried to brush off the union pressure at a news conference following a speech in which she told party loyalists her two percentage point surtax on the rich is “a debate this province desperately needs to have.”

“Everybody is disappointed with that budget, New Democrats as well as everyday Ontarians, so I’m not surprised that people want to see as much change as we can possibly get,” Horwath told reporters, describing debate at the convention as “vigorous.”

“I’m working to try to make the budget better … I’m not going to presuppose where that’s going to end up,” she said. “I’m waiting to hear what the Liberals have to say.”

Ryan said Horwath should stop worrying that the government might blame New Democrats if a budget deal can’t be reached, plunging Ontario into an election.

“We should be saying to McGuinty: if you want to pull the plug let it be on your head … the public gave the NDP the balance of power. We should use it wisely and we should say these are the issues that are important.”

Horwath acknowledged her party, still $3 million in debt from last fall’s election, is getting its financing lined up in case the government falls later this month.

“Various people have come forward … to say if the McGuinty Liberals decide they want to have an election that they would be prepared to make sure we’re able to fight that election,” she said when asked about the Ontario Public Service Employees Union agreeing to co-sign bank loans.

Liberal MPP David Orazietti (Sault Ste. Marie) said it should make taxpayers nervous that New Democrats are so closely tied to public sector unions. “It calls into question who really makes the decisions.”

New Democrat operatives countered that the Liberals have enjoyed plenty of labour support, including teacher unions, as part of the Working Families Coalition that has been active in previous elections.

A senior Liberal source said negotiations on a budget deal, with no detailed discussion yet of a wealth surtax, have been on hold for the past few days while the NDP convention is on.

The government has been waiting to gauge the mood of the convention and “let that unfold,” the source said. “We’re still doing our analysis.”

The NDP claims its tax the rich scheme would raise $570 million a year that could be used to cut the eight per cent provincial portion of the HST on home heating, preserve 4,000 child care spots and raise benefits for the disabled on the Ontario Disability Support Plan by one per cent.

Horwath also wants salaries of newly hired public sector executives or their contract renewals capped a $418,000 annually — twice the premier’s salary.

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